Our Team
Dennis Frayne
Dennis Frayne is an educational leader, teacher, musician, and business owner. As a school teacher, Dennis has taught grades K-12, Band/Orchestra, Choir, Piano, AP Music Theory, General Music, and Musical Theater. Dennis has conducted choirs for churches, directed music ministries, performed piano for recitals and concerts, and accompanied ensembles ranging from choral groups to dance classes. Dennis presently teaches in his own private music studio in Lake Forest, CA. He also directs a youth choir at KidSingers in Santa Ana, and plays the piano for ballet classes at The Wooden Floor in Santa Ana, both which provide educational opportunities for economically-disadvantaged youth.
In addition to music, Dennis has a business background, including as owner of a software and research company (Hostedware), and now a publishing company (Presto! It’s Music Magic Publishing). Dennis has participated in community, school, and church fundraisers, and many volunteer projects, including significantly his role as Chair for Serra Catholic School’s 13th Annual Harvest Festival in 2007, where he organized 30 committees and over 600 parent and student volunteers, raised $60,000 for the school, plus $2,500 for the local Red Cross fire relief efforts. As a parent Dennis has also helped out in the classrooms, performed recess and lunch duty, coached after-school sports, led Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops, and helped with a number of fundraisers for a variety of organizations and in a variety of capacities for many years.
Dennis earned his MA in Teaching from CSU Fresno, a BM in Music Education, and a BA in Theater Arts, from CSU Long Beach, Bob Cole Conservatory of Music, graduating magna cum laude. Dennis has conducted orchestra and opera at the university, has received Designated Subjects (Adult Education) Credentials in Performing Arts/Music, Technology and Business, and Single Subject Credential in Music Education and Theater Arts from CSULB.
Dennis is an active member of several associations including the Music Teachers’ Association of California (MTAC), the National Association for Music Education (NAfME/MENC), and the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), and several educational honor societies including the Pi Kappa Lambda National Music Honor Society and the Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society.
During his college career and tenure at CSULB, Dennis received several scholarships, served as the treasurer of the CSULB student chapter of the American Choral Directors Association, served as the Bass Section Leader for the CSULB University Choir, and received a sponsorship from the College of the Arts Student Council (COTASC) and a grant from ASI to produce, direct and conduct a student opera, Down in the Valley by Kurt Weill, a collaborative effort among several COTA departments including Music, Theater Arts, Dance, Fine Arts, and Film.
Dennis is looking forward to launching Scholarship Squirrel in order to help children and youth receive the education they seek to achieve their dreams.
Grace Byeon
Grace Byeon is a businesswoman, musician, and community supporter. Grace holds a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from California State University, Long Beach. While there she was featured as the soprano soloist in Carmina Burana and in Terry Riley’s Sun Rings with the Kronos Quartet, as well as winning the Bob Cole Conservatory Vocal Concerto Competition. She has played various musical theater and opera roles such as Violet Hilton in Side Show, Marcy Park in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, the Queen of the Night (Die Königin der Nacht) in Die Zauberflöte, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Jennie Parsons in Down in the Valley, and Cathleen in Riders to the Sea. She has also appeared in concert performances of arias from Lucia di Lammermoor, Mignon, Idomeneo, and Ariadne auf Naxos, as well as in multiple performances of Messiah.
Grace spent a year at the California Institute of the Arts studying with Maria Fortuna Dean and Dr. Tali Tadmor before moving on to study with Timothy MacDougall and Dr. David Anglin at CSULB. She has worked with various voice greats, including master classes with Frederica von Stade, Roberta Alexander, Vinson Cole, Judith Natalucci, and Delores Ziegler. She has also worked under the direction of Thor Steingraber, Joanne Gordon, and Stephanie Vlahos for both opera and musical theater productions.
Having spent a year abroad in Barcelona during her undergraduate years at UCLA, Grace is fluent in Spanish. She is also conversationally fluent in Korean, has studied French and German, plus Latin and Italian. More recently, she studied screen and voice acting under Maria Mayenzet. Grace has owned and operated a coffee shop and worked in various restaurants and retail stores with her family, and is looking forward to helping others receive the education they need to achieve their dreams.
Diana Chu (Li)
Diana Chu (Li) is a singer and pianist, teaching a private studio of over 30 piano and voice students in her home in Mission Viejo, as well as performing weekly at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Ladera Ranch. She also performs at several weddings and events every year.
Diana is an active member of the Music Teachers Association of California (MTAC) where she has served in helpful capacities over many years.
She resides with her husband Victor and her children, Violet (6) and Davin (2).